Carry That Weight
by roxyroxas1313
Summary: AU starting after Voldemort was defeated by The-Boy-Who-Lived the first time. Dumbledore uncovers a closely guarded secret that was connected to the fallen dark lord. Could this secret change the fate of the wizarding world once again and how does a single child play into all of this? This story has mentions of abuse, read carefully. The rating might also go up in time. Bellamione.
1. Chapter 1

"Are you sure this is the best option, Albus? Don't you remember how well this turned out last time with her father? This course of action seems bloody foolish." The professor remarked to the weary headmaster who was currently slouched over at his desk.

The wizard seemed to ignore Minerva's inquisition to instead stare down at the news articles laying about on his desk. Each paper claimed in big broad headlines the end of the dark lord, Voldemort. It had almost been a month already but it seems the wizarding world was still celebrating the dark wizard's defeat at the hand of the small child now nicknamed, The-Boy-Who-Lived. Who knows for sure though how long his defeat will last?

"It was the only way, Min." Albus Dumbledore confessed after he finished his brief moment of contemplation. "No one in the wizarding world would willingly adopt someone like her; not with her ancestry. Furthermore, I'm sure some of _his_ enemies would be glad to permanently dispose of her here."

Minerva scowled at the reply, "Still we should have done something differently. I can't help but feel we are just repeating history with shoving her off to muggles like this."

"I have to agree with Min on this one, Dumbledore." Severus Snape interrupted as he stepped out from his place in the shadowy covered crevice. "You are just begging the fates to create another one of _him_ with this."

"I think not and regardless it's to late now to change things," Dumbledore disclosed softly, "Sirius has already given her over to them by now."

"That mutt is still loyal as ever to his master I see." Snape sneered out at the mention of his past school bully.

"Sirius is just playing his part in all of this, Severus. Try not to give him such a hard time for his past mistakes." Dumbledore chided after him.

"All he's doing is not biting the hand that keeps him fed and out of prison," Snape countered bitterly. His dark robes billowed out from behind him as he left the discussion at that to instead seek out the peace and quiet of his potion's lab.

Minerva took note of the fiery bite in Snape's ending comment. Perhaps the man is still holding a grudge over his school days as Albus assumed but she thinks this anger at Sirius is a new addition. The two of them disliked each other sure but Snape never seemed to have this level of disapproval for the man. Minerva thought the swirling darkness in his eyes when Albus mentioned Sirius just now was downright loathing.

Minerva sighed after the door clicked shut, "Albus, I can only hope you know what you're doing with this."

* * *

Severus Snape stared down at the address and name that had been given to him. Then he looked up at the shabby building in front of him. Afterwords he looked down again at the piece of parchment in his hand that had been so much trouble for the past few minutes.

 _Hermione Jane Granger_

 _Room 13, Wool's Orphanage_

 _London._

This cannot be the place he thought to himself. The daughter of _him_ shouldn't have that last name or be in this run down scam of a orphanage. Dumbledore had really outdone himself with this one if this was the case. Nobody would think to look for her here; it was the perfect place to hide what was _his_. As he pushed open the rusted gate and walked up the cobblestone pathway that had a few stones missing he suddenly noticed something. The whole world around the orphanage was dead silent, not a sound could be heard from anywhere. It was starting to become unnerving for him to hear absolutely nothing as he moved closer and closer to his intended location.

Once he reached the door he knocked carefully on the rotting wood and waited for an answer. In record timing a old woman trudged her way to the entrance and opened the door slightly to see who in their right mind decided to knock on her door. Nobody had come to this orphanage in years and she was always contemplating shutting the place down for good to instead go peacefully retire somewhere else.

Snape couldn't help but scowl at the woman who answered the door. She looked like the textbook example of a filthy muggle. She was maybe in her fifties, with her salt-pepper hair pulled back in a lazily put together bun. He also noticed she had a terrible taste in clothing with the very tattered and old gray dress she wore. When he compared his nice silky black suit to her poverty like clothing he felt a smidge of cockiness enter him.

"Can I help you, lad?" The person he assumed was the matron grumbled out.

Snape straightened his posture and prepared to unleash his best friendly attitude. In times like this he really wishes Albus would stop assigning him these types of jobs. He despises having to pretend he's the overly friendly type. "Good morning ma'am, I'm Professor Snape and I'm looking for a young girl."

"Is this your first time adopting a child?" The matron asked, suddenly a little excited at the possibility of pawning off one of the last children currently living here.

Snape quickly covered his annoyance from the question with a smile, "No ma'am, I'm looking for a girl that I was told was currently living here. Is there a way I could talk with her? My school is highly attracted to her."

The older woman nodded regardless of her sight displeasure and led Snape into the building. He noticed with a growing dread that the place was very badly kept and the roof looked like it would fall down on top of you at a moment's notice. The wood flooring was also rotting in various places and he stepped lightly so he wouldn't fall down into any of the what he assumed where termite infested holes.

"Might I ask Professor Snape what kind of school searches for people in places like this?" The matron voiced as they made their way down a hallway with the lights flicking on and off.

Snape actually smirked a bit at that. The woman at least had the common sense to question his creditability for searching out students in orphanages. "The headmaster at our school is very stern about keeping our school a secret, you see. I have orders not to talk about it to anyone besides the girl."

The matron frowned, "That seems very suspicious, Professor."

Snape tried to turn his charming up a notch with a sympathetic smile, "Indeed it does but I'm sworn to secrecy on the subject. I'm very sorry ma'am I hope you can understand all I can say is we deal with very unique individuals."

The matron seemed to take the explanation in stride, "Alright then please tell me who you are looking for exactly?"

Snape once again looked down at the small parchment in his hand and made sure he said her name correctly, "Hermione Jane Granger, please."

The matron suddenly stopped short and turned around to face the Professor. "You must have gotten the wrong information, Professor, there's no way a school would want to take her in." She glared at Snape, "What kind of joke is this?"

Snape couldn't help the small frown that made its way onto the friendly mask he wore on his face, "I assure you ma'am my school is never wrong, and I promise you I am not joking in the slightest sense."

The woman shook her head, a little more than furious. "That girl arrived here about eleven years ago now and is in no state to attend any kind of special school. By lord, she shouldn't even be here! An asylum or something would be better off for her."

Snape raised an eyebrow at the woman's remarks. Of course he expected the brat of _him_ would be a little difficult to handle but he didn't expect this kind of reaction. What could make this woman believe a child should belong locked up somewhere?

Replacing his mask of niceness he kindly asked, "It must have been hard for you to raise her here ma'am but what makes you believe she should be someplace else?"

The matron scoffed loudly, "For starters various people including myself have caught her talking to snakes before and if that wasn't odd enough she has the worst attitude I've ever seen on a child when told the snakes cannot reply to her."

Snape's unease about this whole situation seemed to sky rocket after the woman finished her explanation. The girl had possibly inherited one of _his_ signature traits, this could bode trouble for the future of wizarding society. "I'm sure she's just a lonely child seeking attention by this act, ma'am." Snape tried to convince the woman in front of him and to a slight degree himself.

"She might be but regardless, Professor, after learning this do you still choose to still seek her out? I assure you I wont hold it against you if you choose to turn tail and leave now. This girl is nothing but trouble."

"Thank you for the option ma'am but my school is set on enrolling her." Snape assured the woman with another fake smile.

"If that's what you want, Professor. Don't say I didn't warn you." The matron declared as she continued to lead Snape down the cramped hallway.

As they passed by the bedrooms the children stayed in Snape looked in on them once in a while to find kids in raggedy old clothing moping about. Each child he passed looked like a skeleton with how starved and unkempt they looked. In addition, they even smelled like death itself. This place was a dump, Snape noted to himself. After a few minutes of walking they came upon a closed door with the number thirteen painted onto the front. Reaching down into her sleeve the Matron pulled out a key and unlocked the doorknob so they could go in. Hence, they quickly entered and Snape saw his first glimpse of Hermione Granger. She was seated faced away from him on what he presumed was her small bed. She seemed to be reading a book of some sort as he heard her flip the pages every few seconds or so.

"Granger," The matron snapped out as she grew annoyed at being completely ignored by the girl, "A Professor is here to see you about an opportunity to attend his school."

The girl sighed softly as she put away the book she was previously reading. As she turned his way Snape swore he saw _him_ for a second. Her cheekbones had the same sharp edge to them, her hair was the same shade of pitch blackness, and finally her eyes were the exact same dark color as his. Snape was sure she was a female replica of him. Dumbledore had been kidding himself when he thought he could hide her from the wizarding world. As soon as his followers saw her they'd know for certain who she was.

"What school are you here to talk about, Sir?" Granger politely inquired as she slid off the run-down bed and walked over to stand in front of Snape.

Snape looked down at the girl and noticed she wore nothing but a flimsy muggle t-shirt and shorts. Surely the matron would supply her and the other children something warmer for this weather. It was nearing fall now and it was getting colder by the day. At the same time he remembered though how run down everything and everyone looked here. Even this girl couldn't escape the dirty look everyone had here. She looked just as deprived as any of the other children he passed by. Pulling himself back on track, he reached into his suit pocket and then handed the girl her Hogwarts acceptance letter.

She quickly read it over and started to show a smile that set Snape's nerves on edge once again. She reminded him way to much of her father.

"Is this true?" She looked up from the letter to ask Snape.

Snape nodded down to the girl and quickly whipped out the wand from his sleeve to cast a spell on the matron so she would leave them alone to talk. Once that was done he turned around to see the girl barely hiding her flabbergasted expression at his use of sudden magic.

"Do I need to spell it out for you now or do you understand what's going on?" Snape quipped.

Hermione just nodded and folded back up the letter in her hand. "I do have a different question though, Professor," She remarked after taking a moment, "How am I supposed to get all the items on this list? I don't have any money or a means to get everything."

Snape took a deep breath and prepared himself for the following speech that he really didn't want to give but had to. The girl did deserve some answers. "Here comes the biggest part, Ms. Granger. Before I begin I have to mention I can't tell you everything. Somethings I am bound by magic not to revel. Regardless of that to answer your question; your father was a wizard and he left you a large sum of money in a wizarding bank account. You cannot withdraw anything by yourself though until you come of age. Seeing as I am your godfather though I can do it for you."

Hermione nodded at the explanation and was about to say something else before Snape decided to cut her off before she properly began."To answer the last part of your question I will return a week before September to take you shopping for all the items you need," Snape finished lecturing.

"You know its rude to cut someone off," Hermione pointed out in annoyance at her newly reveled godfather.

"You weren't saying anything to cut off," Snape taunted back at his godchild.

Hermione conceded with a frown, "Touche."

Snape watched the girl as she left him by the doorway to go back and sit on her bed. After she sat back down she pulled out her book from under the pillow and began to read again. Snape noticed this was her way of giving him a quiet dismissal. Seeing that he was done here for now he left the way he came in and once he was sure no one was around he apparated back towards Hogwarts to report in to the headmaster.

* * *

"You met with the girl?" Dumbledore inquired the moment Snape set a foot into his office.

Snape was annoyed at the quick questioning but he nodded regardless. It's better to just submit yourself to Dumbledore's inquiry; he nags like the worst old lady ever. "I gave her the acceptance latter, informed her of the money she was left, and told her how I'm her godfather."

Dumbledore nodded along, "What did you think of the child?"

Snape took a moment to ponder over the question. Hermione Granger wasn't what he thought she'd be. He expected she'd be more darker and like her father in attitude. Instead he was subjected to someone who looked like _him_ and was a well mannered young girl who was deprived of some basic necessities. She was overall almost like a mystery to him.

"The orphanage is in terrible living condition. Ms. Granger seems to be deprived of basic necessities like showering and eating regularly. Besides that she seems to be well mannered and curious about our world." Snape stated.

Dumbledore leaned forward from his desk in interest, "That's all?"

"The matron mentioned she had a bad attitude sometimes and that she could talk to snakes," Snape added, "I didn't see either of those things with my own eyes though."

"Good work, Severus. When you see her again in a few weeks keep a close eye on her and report everything back to me when you return. You are dismissed for now." Dumbledore pushed up the spectacles on his nose and waved Snape from his office.

Snape was more then eager to leave when he was told to. He hated being questioned by Dumbledore, the old man had a way of getting under your skin without alerting you. He swore the sorting hat got it wrong when it sorted the headmaster way back then. He was definitely a Slytherin at heart.

* * *

 **A/N:** _*sigh*_ I already have another HP fic in the works and various other fics too... This one just jumped on me though and I spent all night/morning writing it. I couldn't control myself and by the time I was finished I felt I had to post this. SO here we are. Another fic to work on. If you are good at guessing plots (and I did leave hints...) you can probably guess a few things that will happen next. I can almost guarantee though you can't guess everything. Well I think I can say that, I can't read minds after all. I just have hope what I have cooking for this story isn't too predictable. If you want to cast your bets though on the plot feel free! I love reading reviews for my work.

Anyway, yes this is going to eventually be Bellamione. I was dragged helplessly into this pairing by all the great fics out there for these two. If you can spare the time go read some of them on this site if you haven't already. I highly recommend the works by N. Blackman. Those stories are a joy to read and reread. Wrapping up here I hope you stick around, leave some constructed criticism if you feel the need, and enjoy the story. I can't think of anything else to say here so toodaloo~

 _ **-RoxyRoxas1313**_


	2. Chapter 2

Another light bulb shattered overhead in the now dark hallway Hermione trotted down. This became a normal occurrence to happen around her. Ever since she was little the other occupants of the home and the caretaker herself regularly liked to remind her she was a cursed child for such displays. Up until a few weeks ago she actually even believed them. That all changed when Professor Snape payed her a visit. He gave her a Hogwarts acceptance letter that explained she was magical. This also meant she had a opportunity to go to a place with people that were gifted in the same vain as her.

"Off to chat with the snakes again, freak?" One of the kids spoke out as she tried to slip passed them in the main front room. Hermione didn't want to reply because he would just see that as antagonizing but she feared his reaction if she ignored him too.

Sighing she turned to face the kid that spoke, "No, I'm just going to wait for my new teacher to arrive."

"You must think you're better then us for getting into a snobby private school," The boy sneered out, "Let me remind you though your not. You're still the same old freak show as you were and nothing will ever change that."

Daring to ignore the insulting boy now, Hermione continued to walk out of the home. As she stopped to wait on the steps of the orphanage she noticed the other kids around the front yard. Usually by this time of the year most of the kids stayed indoors due to the cold weather but luckily for them today was a unusually warm day. However, unfortunately for her it wasn't quite warm enough to see any snakes. She missed them greatly in times like this; they'd help quell her growing anxiety.

"Don't you dare walk out on me when I'm talking to you, bloody freak." The same boy from earlier yelled out while stomping on the porch towards her along with his friends.

Soon enough though the Professor appeared again dressed in his expensive looking suit. "Granger, come along now." Snape snapped out once he reached the cobblestone pathway in front of the growing group of kids.

He seemed to be in a fouler mood after he took his first glance at her, Hermione noted. She was accustomed to people disliking her but never by just simply glancing at her. Brushing aside his displeasure for now, she walked away from the group, and followed the Professor out the rusted front gate into a deserted alleyway.

There the Professor offered Hermione the use of his arm and said, "Grab hold and don't let go. This is going to feel a little disorienting at first." Once she gripped hold of his sleeve they disappeared with a faint crackling noise.

After reappearing in a completely new location, Hermione tried desperately to hold herself upright. Whatever the Professor just did consequently caused her to suddenly feel sick. If the world didn't stop spinning soon she'd certainly fall right over onto her face.

"The first time apparating is tough on some; don't worry Granger It'll pass." Snape assured from his standing position in front. Following a few minutes of recuperation Hermione gathered her strength and pushed passed the nausea to join up with him.

Snape noticed her approaching and began, "Now let's go over the agenda for today; I don't have the time for anymore dilly-dallying. First we are going to visit the Gringotts bank to withdraw the money for your school supplies. Next we are going to move onto the actual shopping to get you quills, books, fitted for a uniform, a familiar, and finally a wand."

Hermione simply nodded along to his plan as she followed him out of the new alleyway they appeared in. Subsequently as they walked into the main street she saw a wide assortment of colorful shops. Many of them looked like the regular establishments she'd see down town when she had the rare chance to visit it, but what stood out here was the uses of magic. Brooms floated behind one of the window's they passed by and other items she didn't have the names for were on full display.

Coming upon a massive building Hermione looked up to see the words Gringotts Bank carved into the stone. Snape dragged her inside quickly though before she could appreciate it any more. Furthermore, the building's lobby had the highest ceiling she'd ever seen before and she couldn't help but stop to stare at the massive chandeliers hanging down from it. Once again though the Professor broke her away and lead her up to one of the desks instead. There she finally took notice of the creatures spread throughout the room and really wanted to ask the Professor about them.

Before she could speak the Professor addressed her growing curiosity, "They are called goblins; their job is to run the bank."

"Is that all they do?" Hermione asked, carefully eying the somewhat odd looking creatures.

"Let's just leave it at that for now; you'll probably learn more at Hogwarts." Snape droned out as he strolled up to a clerk's desk space.

"I need to withdraw this amount from this account." Snape stated as he slid a piece of paper over to the goblin behind the desk.

The goblin unfolded the paper and read it carefully before raising a eyebrow, "Are you absolutely sure you want to make a withdraw from _this_ vault, Sir? No one has touched it since the last known heir _._ "

The Professor scowled at the clerk's question. "I'm positive," He sneered out.

The goblin grumbled, "Can I see a wand to confirm your identity?" Snape's scowl deepened but he complied by handing over the wand from his sleeve. The goblin accepted it from his hand and left them at the desk for a moment. When he returned to sight he handed over the Professor's wand as well as a little pouch of money. Snape muttered out a thank you and spun around to swiftly lead them back out the building. He really didn't like standing around anywhere for to long.

Back outside she saw all the people going too and from the shops. Everyone seemed to be in such a hurry here and the Professor wasn't any different. She barely had any time to look around as he briskly dragged her into and out of shops for some quills and books. Then he moved onto the clothing store for her school robes. As soon as he stepped into the store Snape called over the attention of a tailor.

"It's not everyday I get the chance to see the great Professor Snape in my little store." The old woman said as she made her way over to the duo with a smile.

"Don't get used to it; I'm only here because of my job." Snape replied with his permanent scowl growing in his annoyance.

"Of course, sweetheart," She said seemingly unaffected by Snape's frowning, "Now let's see what we have here." She said as she looked down towards Hermione. "Is this your first year at Hogwarts, little one?"

Hermione found herself frowning too at the woman's over friendliness. It was off putting to be on the receiving end for once of such attention. "Yes, ma'am."

"Oh good, you'll enjoy it. Now let's see what size you are." The shopkeeper said as she waved her wand around to make some sort of measuring tape appear. After walking around Hermione for a moment she looked down at the measurement's in her hand and let out a tutting noise, "You are even tinier then you appear."

Hermione began to fidget uncomfortably under the woman's eyes, "Uh, thanks."

"No thanks are needed, dear." The shopkeeper replied while shooting an worried look at Snape over her shoulder. The professor slyly avoided the glance and instead turned around to look out the front window. Hermione thought he looked fed up with the growing nosiness of the shopkeeper.

"Are we done here, Ms?" Hermione asked, interrupting the shopkeeper before she could attempt to pry any further. She really didn't feel like indulging the woman by answering any questions pertaining to herself today. She would rather forget about everything to instead concentrate on the new school she'd be attending soon.

The shopkeeper looked back at her, "Almost just let me transfigure the clothes to fit your size," She replied. Once the spell work was hastily completed and her new robes were placed in Snape's possession they quickly left the store. The professor was in a bad mood the whole way to the pet store and everyone took notice as he managed to frighten off a few other kids with his glares.

"Welcome to Magical Menagerie how may I help you?" A saleswoman asked as Snape led them threw the door into the pet store. Inside the whole place was packed full with crates containing various creatures. Some of the animals she knew the names of like frogs and ravens. Others she couldn't even attempt to guess what they were.

"I'm here to get a familiar for a student." Snape barked out as he strutted up to the counter. It seems like nobody was exempt from experiencing his growing irritation. Hermione side stepped away from the fuming professor and went up to a few cages to get a better look at the creatures within. A few of them growled at her approach but most of them just eyed her in curiosity. A few snakes hissed in a plea to let them out but she knew that was a bad idea. Professor Snape was already mad enough for today she didn't want to further enrage him.

While walking around she noticed most of the animals were either annoyed or afraid of her for some reason. Only the snakes seemed interested in interacting with her nicely. Concluding she wasn't going to get anything else she reached for the cutest snake and took the crate over to the counter where Snape stood. The professor looked at her choice and his eyes widened in what she could only call fear.

"Put that back right now!" He roared. His sudden outburst startled Hermione quite a bit and she dropped the crate with the little snake onto the floor. A sudden burst of accidental magic from her also managed to crack the cage wide open for the snake to slither outward. Snape cursed at the now lose pet and took out his wand quickly to contain it. After firing off a few spells he managed to trap it and scooped it back up into the fixed crate. He looked over towards his wide eyed in alarm student and finally realized his mistake. He reprimanded himself in his head for such a big and not needed display.

"Ms. Granger please pick another familiar, please." Snape asked the frightened girl in the most gentle tone he could muster. He really didn't want to give her any more frights at the moment; she was spooked enough.

"Y-yes, Sir." Hermione stuttered out as she walked over to the crates again with the saleswoman trailing behind her. With the help of the clerk she managed to obtain a black kitten half-kneazle she named Crookshanks, and Snape quietly paid for him as they left to head towards the wand store.

Ollivanders wand shop was a quaint store right down the road next to a few shops she didn't bother to look up at. Snape's yelling earlier managed to sap every ounce of energy from her and she just wanted to curl up with her new textbooks to recuperate. Sadly the world had other plans for her and she found herself getting pushed into the old run down wand shop by Snape.

An old man was standing before them behind a counter as they entered. His wide eyes shined threw the gloom of the cluttered shop. When he spoke he sounded oddly delighted to see them walking into his humble store.

"Professor it's been so long since I've seen you in here," Ollivander paused to look at Snape's wand hidden in his sleeve, "I hope your wand isn't giving you any trouble."

Snape didn't seem to be irritated at all by Ollivander's friendliness. Which was odd to witness because he seemed to be mildly annoyed at everyone today. "My wand is perfectly fine, Ollivander. I'm here for a student." Snape responded.

"That's odd you don't usually occupancy students but I digress," Ollivander looked down to smile at Hermione by Snape's side. "Hello young miss, let's find a wand that likes you." The wand maker stated as he began to pull out boxes from the shelves around him for Hermione to look at.

"Maybe a unicorn? No..." Ollivander mumbled to himself as he bumbled around the shop's clutter and made Hermione try out a few different types of wands. Many of them made something explode in the shop or they didn't do anything at all. After multiple trials with no success in sight it was starting to tire her out even more. Even Crookshanks was growing tired from inside his crate by her side.

Ollivander even disappeared for a while behind the stacks in a desperate search for the right wand. He emerged a few minutes later carrying a black box with a smile on his face. "I made this wand a long time ago for a certain witch but she ended up taking it's twin instead," Ollivander reminisced with a sad smile etched on his face, "I never imagined someone else would be suited for this wand instead."

He opened the box and withdrew a yellowish-brown wand woven with vines. "This wand's core is dragon heartstring; the same as it's twin. It is also made of vine wood, 10 ¾ in length. These wands are quite powerful and tend to learn rather quickly," Ollivander's smile widened, "I can tell you'll do great things with this and maybe one day given the chance you'll even meet it's twin sister." Ollivander proceeded to place the wand in Hermione's hand and it started to instantly radiate warmth up her arm.

"It's beautiful." Hermione gushed as the wand continued to bound affectionately with it's new owner.

"Give it a flick." Ollivander suggested as he watched the little witch and her new wand adjust to one another.

She did as instructed and the wand lit up to fire off a few satisfying sparks. This led to a long forgotten smile slowly growing across her facial features. Finally witnessing her own magic in action was really exhilarating.

"Thank you for the wand, Ollivander. That will be all for now." Snape spoke up while handing over the money needed.

"Goodbye, come back anytime young miss if you need anything." Ollivander yelled out from behind them as the teacher and student left the shop.

Once outside Snape quickly pulled Hermione into an abrupt apperation and they emerged back in a alleyway outside of the orphanage. Looking down Snape noticed Hermione's disoriented disposition once again. It seems she isn't adapting to magical transportation well.

With a flick of his wand Snape enlarged the items in his pocket, "Here's your school trunk, Ms. Granger," Growing a sudden surge of courage he added, "If you ever need help with anything don't be afraid to ask me. I am your Godfather after all."

Hermione managed to smile a little at the olive branch Snape tried to extend out to her. Maybe he wasn't a bad guy to the core after all like she first thought today. "I'll remember that thank you, sir."

Snape tried to squander the smile that threatened to overtake his features. This child shouldn't be so damn kind to him. After all he hasn't been as nice to her today. In fact all he managed to do was spook her and make her uncomfortable all day.

"I'll see you on September first then, goodbye." Snape blurted out as he hastily apperated away again to leave Hermione behind in thought of her first experience in the magical world with her last remaining family member.

* * *

September came and soon enough Hermione was standing on the platform waiting to board the train. Looking around she noticed the differences between non-magical and magical families by their clothing. Wizards and witches wore types of robes and other people wore what she thought of as regular clothes. She fit in with the magical world today because she choose to wear her school uniform instead of the other set of clothes she brought along with her.

The train suddenly let out a load whistle and she broke off her sightseeing to board. Pulling a heavy trunk with Crookshanks crate was difficult for her but she managed to find a compartment in record time to settle down in. The rest of the train was loaded with all the other kids chattering but she tuned them out to read her favorite magical book, Hogwarts a history.

A few minutes later the compartment door slid open and a boy with platinum blonde hair poked his head inside. Once he saw the place was mostly empty he walked inside and settled on the opposite seat from Hermione.

"My name is Draco nice to meet you."

"I'm Hermione nice to meet you too."

Introductions finished the two decided to sit in silence to read their own books. The time flew by and they didn't say much else to each other besides the occasional what are you reading about questions. The train then came to a stop as they bid farewell to each other. Draco walked over to rejoin a group of people and Hermione followed along behind them to the boats that were taking them towards Hogwarts.

"I'm Pansy Parkinson and you are?" A pug like girl suddenly asked Hermione once they exited the boats to start a trek towards the castle.

She was already growing tired of introducing herself but she obliged the girl's curiosity. "Hermione Granger."

"Granger isn't a pureblood family name," Pansy stated as a matter of fact, "Slytherin's snake, Malfoy shared a compartment with a mudblood! Oh my, I hope he didn't catch anything fatal." She taunted as she encouraged others to move away from Hermione like she had some kind of highly contagious disease.

Hermione scowled back at the girl but didn't comment further. She knew saying anything back would just turn out to be bad for her. Girls like Pansy truly believe they are better then everyone else and talking back only puts you on their future target list. Instead she followed the rest of the students up to the castle doors quietly where they waited for Professor McGonagall to finish her speech about the house sorting system. Hermione already read about all four hoses in Hogwarts a history so she took the time to appreciate the enchanted ceiling they were starting to walk under.

It was truly an extraordinary experience to see magic working around her first hand. Of course she already saw Professor Snape preform magic before and she read all about it in her various textbooks. But seeing a whole room entangled with the soul purpose of magic is something else entirely. You can almost taste the presence of magic penetrating the air all around the hall. It was truly starting to sink in now that maybe she could belong somewhere and learn without mass judgment of her magical abilities.

"Hermione Granger." Professor McGonagall called from her spot next to the sorting hat stool.

Hermione slowly walked away from the rest of the students to join the Professor. Sudden nervousness made her palms sweat as she took a seat and the hat was placed on top of her head. The hat let out a hum and started to speak to her.

"I never thought I'd have the pleasure of sorting his child. Oh and what a brilliant mind you have; just so eager to learn everything like your father back then." The hat muttered.

"Do you know who my father is, Mr. Hat?" Hermione asked, longing to learn about her mysterious magical parent she never got the chance to meet.

"I certainly do know who he was but alas that knowledge isn't for me to share with you. Sorry about that but let's get back on track here. Ravenclaw would indeed suit you but I feel it isn't what you need. No, you need to embrace that cunningness and determination." The hat took an extended pause to think the complicated sorting decision over before he announced to the eagerly awaiting hall...

"Slytherin!"

* * *

 **AN:** Since my last update this story has become my most popular. Wow. I gotta say I didn't expect to see so many reviews and follows. Thanks, you guys are the ones that made me push threw and update this. It was tough but it's finally complete! It's only been... Two months... I'll try to keep the wait shorter next time but yeah... I'm a busy person. If you want updates on the progress of chapter three just check my profile. I update that a lot. Also, a lot of people asked about the possibility of dark!Hermione and I have to kinda disappoint you... It isn't happening. I'm leaning towards her being more in the gray area for now. I don't think she has the reasoning for going full dark quite yet. Who knows though. The future of her character is unknown. All I know is she'll be going threw some changes... and Bella still needs to make her appearance.

I'm done rambling for now. Leave a review if you have any further questions or anything. See you in chapter three.

 _ **-RoxyRoxas1313**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**"Illi mors gravis incubat,**_  
 _ **Qui, notus nimis omnibus,**_  
 _ **Ignotus moritur sibi"**_

* * *

 _She hears the screaming before anything else. The sound is overpowering all other senses and she can't help but feel its suffocating the life out of her. After a moment though it halts and she slowly opens her eyes to seek out what caused such a horrid noise. She can't see anything clearly; the room is pitch black and she can feel someone's breath on her face as they sit close to whisper indistinguishable words into her ear. The voice sounds male but she cannot pin point who he is? The barrage of questions run a mile a minute in her mind and she becomes confounded._

 _Why is she here in this pitch black room with some strange man holding her close? The answer never comes but instead the room suddenly erupts into a inferno of flames. The screams began again but this time they are louder then ever before. It's blood curdling to hear such a sound with the fire cackling on in some sickened glee as it converges to swallow the whole room. Then she finally sees something distinguishable for the first time. A single man is walking towards her in a white robe. She cannot see his face due to it being covered with a mask but she can tell he is a wizard by the wand he is wielding at his side. She looks close to see the fire spilling out from the tip of his wand and then she knows he is the cause of everything going on here._

 _The two men around her are yelling but she cannot hear them over the sounds of destruction brought on by the fire. She wishes desperately to hear something else besides the crackling but alas she cannot. The fire is all she can sense until the wizard levels his wand down at her. He snarls out the words she hoped to never hear,_

" _Avada Kedavra."_

Hermione awoke to the sound of her gasping for a much needed breath. Wiping the sweat from her brow she decided to stop dozing off again for now. Instead she choose to close the book she fell asleep on top of and leave the library. Ms. Prince scowled over at her as she left for drooling all over her books and in return she gave a apologetic acknowledgment.

It wasn't late at all yet but Hermione decided to visit the astronomy tower. She didn't know why she choose this place exactly, her feet just carried her here. Maybe it was because she knew nobody would be here during this time. Everyone else was much to busy awaiting the announcement of the champion's for the upcoming tournament in the great hall. Here though away from it all she could be free for a bit. The wind suddenly blew past her outer robes and the coldness it brought managed to seep straight into her bones. She didn't think of it all that much though; It was always somehow chillier back at the orphanage after all.

She leaned over onto the arm railing and looked down onto the school grounds. From here she could just make out the Durmstrang ship and the carriage the Beauxbatons students arrived in. Both schools were certainly interesting to some extent but she didn't want to bother with them much. Certainly by now her classmates must have told them about her supposed heritage of being a dirty muggle-born in a house that only holds pure-bloods in high regard. She originally thought by coming to Hogwarts all the bullying she dealt with would cease but it only grew worse after that dreadful sorting. The gryffindor's especially loved to poke fun at her the lone snake. After all she was a easy target for them without the protection of her housemates whom ignored her entire existence for most of the time.

Growing depressed with her line of thinking she decided to exit the tower and join in on the last few minutes of dinner. The great hall by itself always managed to cheer her up a little bit with all the grand magical displays. The candles idly floated around the room as always, and the ceiling showcased a brilliant clear night sky unlike the cloudy one that was currently present outside. This soothing sight helped her ignore all the remarks her sudden entrance into the hall created. She took notice of the Durmstrang students occupying most of the Slytherin table, but she managed to find a empty seat near the end of the table away from most of them.

Dumbledore stood up from his seat at the teacher's table and made his way over to the podium to speak as the hall became silent. "Welcome everyone to the Triwizard Tournament champion selection! Tonight a student from each of the three represented schools will be chosen by the goblet to participate. Before we get started let me just give a quick reminder that the age restriction was lowered this year to incorporate fourth year students. This means more students then ever have the opportunity to receive a chance at the limelight a tournament such as this offers its contestants. Now finally let us begin with the actual drawing..."

The goblet suddenly burst into a red flame and from it a slip of paper floated over to Dumbledore's waiting hand. The hall gasped in awe as he read the paper to himself and then announced aloud, "From Durmstrang we have Viktor Krum!" As expected the other Durmstrang students at the Slytherin table applauded loudly as Krum walked up to take the paper from the headmaster.

The goblet then shot out another piece of paper for Dumbledore, "Next we have Fleur Delacour representing Beauxbatons!" Once again the foreign students from the represented school applauded for their champion as she accepted the paper gracefully.

One last time the goblet lit up and spit out a paper for the headmaster to read, "Finally we have Harry Potter for Hogwarts!" The Gryffindor's roared at the selection and Potter eagerly ran up to accept the paper from the headmaster. Before he joined the other champions though he smiled brightly over at his god-father Sirius Black the DDA professor. The man smiled back in excitement for his god-son, and from beside him Hermione noticed Snape trying his best to hold in a nasty scowl. Even now against his will the notorious odd hatred he carries for Professor Black and Potter was making itself known.

The goblet lit up a tad bit more and Dumbledore's eyes widened slightly behind his spectacles. Whatever the paper he received had written on it managed to disturb the headmaster somehow. He didn't announce to the hall though what the paper said. Instead he took it with him towards the champions meeting room.

Everyone choose to ignore Dumbledore's odd behavior and conversations swiftly broke out at all of the tables about the chosen champions. "I bet Potter cheated to get his name drawn from the goblet." Pansy remarked to the group of Slythrin's sitting around her.

"He wouldn't have," a red-headed Gryffindor argued after she overhead Pansy, "You're just jealous of him you slimy snake. Plus Dumbledore cast the spells on the goblet, Harry isn't smart enough to outsmart him."

"Black must have helped him then." Pansy angrily bit back. Her pure-blood pride of never being wrong raised it's ugly head again.

"Professor Black might have a relation to Harry but he wouldn't help him cheat at something like this," The Gryffindor barked back, "He just isn't that type of person!"

"Shut up, weasel. Black clearly adores Potter to the point he'd help him cheat. You've seen him giving Potter extra special treatment in class all the time!"

"I think that's enough out of you both," Snape furiously interrupted, "You've made quite the spectacle of yourselves already." He growled as he pointed out all the silent staring the argument caused from everyone else in the hall.

Snape directed his glare at Pansy, "Ms. Parkinson I expected better out of a Slythrin, and you Ms. Weasley expect to have a week's worth of detention starting tonight in my lab for escalating all of this."

"That's unfair she started it!" The Weasley insisted.

Snape scowl deepened, "Two weeks worth of detention then."

"Ginny just shut up already, please." Another red-head, presumably a Weasley, begged his sister.

Ginny obeyed her brother in the end and stubbornly sat back down at her assigned table. Pansy did the same thing and they silently started eating the last of their dinner. It was a little out of character for a Slythrin to pick a pointless fight like that right in the middle of the great hall so everyone wanted to forget about it. The presence of foreign students quickly helped them to move on and talk about other subjects for the remainder of the dinner.

"Granger, wait up." Draco called out as the students left the great hall to return to the dorms for the night.

Hermione paused in the hallway only because Draco was the only Slythrin that didn't hound her about heritage. It was odd that he didn't but she didn't want to push her luck by asking him about it anytime soon. "What do you want, Malfoy?"

Once Draco caught up with Hermione he added, "Professor Snape requested to see you right now in the room with the other champions."

Hermione frowned, this wasn't like Snape at all. He has hardly acknowledged or spoken to her ever since he left that day in the alleyway four years ago. It's like he totally forgot about her and they never had that conversation to begin with. Plus, why would he want to see her with all the champions standing around? She didn't have anything to do with the tournament or any of the chosen champions.

"Thanks, I'll go see him now."

Deviating from her original destination back to the dorms, she turned around and walked back into the great hall towards the room she saw all the champions exit into earlier. She entered the room and saw a clutter of people yelling and arguing with each other while the champions stood off almost huddled together in a corner. Once they noticed Hermione's entrance it sparked the room to start growing louder in their arguments. Dumbledore silenced the room though when he moved to approach her.

"Ms. Granger, I apologize for disturbing you at this hour but can you answer a simple question for us?"

"Of course, sir." She replied briskly albeit feeling a bit put out in this situation.

"Did you put your name in the goblet or by chance have someone do it for you?"

Hermione's eyes widened in shock, "W-what I didn't-"

Snape scowled at the headmaster and cut Hermione off, "This is a pointless interrogation of my student. I already told you Granger wouldn't enter the championship; she isn't a stupid attention seeker. It's obvious someone else entered her name and made sure she was chosen."

"This isn't an interrogation, Severus. We just need to know if Ms. Granger entered and how she managed to get chosen as a fourth champion." Dumbledore snapped straight back at Snape.

"I didn't enter!" Hermione interjected loudly. Why would she enter this pointless pissing contest? The prize and limelight didn't hold any appeal.

A giant french witch interrupted them all from the back of the room, "It's against the rules regardless Albus; this is a _triwizard_ tournament!"

"Madame Maxime, Ms. Granger has to stay because the goblet has chosen her. She is magically bound now to compete. If she doesn't fulfill the goblet's wishes and go threw with the tournament she could permanently lose her magic." A _Bulgarian_ man tried to desperately explain to the fired up Maxime. He must have been arguing with her for a while now by the look of his exhausted expression.

"You are correct Karkaroff but we still need to know how this came to pass." Dumbledore acknowledged as he sighed out in a growing exasperation.

"If this is upsetting you so much then launch a official investigation by yourself tomorrow morning," Snape growled, "It's late and some of us need to attend to other matters before the night is permanently squandered by this nonsense."

Dumbledore stroked his beard in thought and then finally nodded along. "We'll drop the matter for now then since you so insist on it, Severus. Before we dismiss though let me inform the champions about the first task. The task itself is designed to test your adaptability and intuition. Those two traits will serve you well during this trial of the strong. In addition, the date for the task is set to November twenty-fourth at nightfall. I hope you all prepare and arm yourselves well. With all that in mind I finally bid you goodnight."

Everyone started to file out of the room at the end of Dumbledore's speech and soon enough the only occupants left are Snape and Hermione. They collectively decide to just stand there awkwardly staring at each other silently. After a few minutes passed and neither one of them knew exactly what to say in each others presence, Hermione stepped up to try to begin a conversation.

"Malfoy said you called me here." She began off with.

"I did." He replied.

"Why?" She asked in return.

"The headmaster wanted to speak with you about how you managed to become the forth champion." He stated.

"Is that all?"

"No, I wanted to speak with you as well."

"About what exactly?" This conversation was starting to be awfully similar to attempting a ride on a irritating hippogriff.

In a surprising turn of events Snape attempted to hide his sudden fidgeting from her gaze, "I wanted to offer my assistance. As you must know a teacher cannot directly interfere or help a champion but I found someone else that can aid you properly instead."

"Who?" She further inquired.

"Draco Malfoy, I've been training him for years in various subjects and I think he'd be a great asset to you in this tournament."

"Why are you helping me? You haven't bothered to for all these years. Hell, you've hardly spoken a word to me!" Hermione argued as her fists balled themselves at her sides. How dare he stand there and say this to her. He basically abandoned her like everyone else!

"I can't tell you why I've done the things I've done for all these years," Snape gaze and stance started to soften as he continued to confide in her, "However, I can tell you this much... The world is changing once again and this time I'm choosing what's left of my family over everything else."

Hermione frown lightened a bit but she still remained stern; she couldn't sweep the past under the rug so easily. "That's good and all but I hope you know this doesn't mean I'll just suddenly start forgiving you for these past few years."

He nodded in understanding, "I expect nothing less."

"Where can I meet with, Malfoy?" She questioned, moving away from the previous topic.

"You can meet Draco tomorrow in my classroom after dinner. There you two can study or train for the remainder of the tournament. If anyone inquires about you two just tell them I gave you both some sort of long standing detention."

"Alright."

With the conversation ending itself there the two of them finally exited the meeting room and walked back to the Slythrin dungeons where they split up and went their separate ways for the night. Hermione walked back to her dorm room and was glad to see that everyone else was fast asleep. She felt a slight gratitude for that, she didn't want to deal with anyone else tonight because Snape's conversation was tiring enough for one night. Plus, this was probably the last night she'd have to relax before they officially announced her as the forth champion.

She still couldn't fully believe that she was the forth champion. The triwizard tournament held none of her interest before but now she felt that it was gradually beginning to. By the things Dumbledore said about the first task she could guess that I'd be something tough to overcome and she always liked some kind of challenge whether it be academically or otherwise.

After casting a spell to tell the time she noticed it was growing very late. If she wanted the strength to attend Malfoy's training session and her classes she'd better get to sleep now. She quickly replaced her school robes with a old tank top and pair of shorts. Satisfied with the change she quickly crawled into bed and drifted off into a dreamless sleep as a storm then began for the night.

* * *

On this same dark and stormy night many miles away from Hogwarts two men sat in Riddle manor next to a fire catching up on current events. The Riddle household wasn't well known to the general wizarding populace anymore like it was back in its past. Most thought it was burned to the ground during a mysterious fire but it was secretly reconstructed under the Malfoy's orders two years ago. Thanks to their foresight the Dark Lord had a base for his operations now and can stay out of the public eye until the right time comes to reveal his revival to the masses.

"How did the goblet performance go?" The Dark Lord inquired after he took a drink of his red wine. Snape knew his Lord always held a admiration for the finer things in life and he was glad his revival didn't tamper with that.

Snape hummed in thought as he looked down at the glass of wine in his hand. He couldn't help it the sight made him recall a odd muggle saying "in vino veritas," translated to mean in wine there is truth. He always thought the quote meant if you get someone drunk enough they'll say anything. On the contrary though in this situation the wine was alike a cleansing substance. With this drink he could celebrate taking the first step away from the lies he surrounded himself with and move towards his own truth.

"She was selected like Karkaroff promised." He reported to his Lord.

The Dark Lord smiled a bit into his now empty wine glass. Snape noted it as a good sign for his Lord's recovery from the depression he fell into shortly after his revival. Waking up again one day after being destroyed like that had to be taxing on someone but the depth of the Dark Lord's recovery issues were disheartening to see for everyone who knew him personally. Their Lord was always a ambitious man and his problems never cause him this much strife before. It worried Narcissa and Antonin the most because they were constantly trying to aid him but to no avail.

"We're moving on then; I'll ask the Lestrange's to set up the next step." The Dark Lord tried to dictate out.

"Are you sure that's wise, my Lord? They've only been out of prison for a year now. They're still recovering and Narcissa will surely melt down if she finds her beloved sister out on missions right now."

He sighed but finally conceded after a moment of consideration; everyone knew hell had no fury when compared to Narcissa's displeasure. "Fine then I'll order Antonin and someone else to do it then."

"I'm sure Lucius will be more then willing to help. He wants to meet her more then anything."

The Dark Lord took his wand out then and performed the spell to call for more death eaters. "I'm calling for Lucius and Antonin to meet us here then; I hope you don't mind the interruption."

"Not at all."

After a few minutes the drawing room doors burst open and in walked two men."You called?" Lucius asked as he strutted into the room with Antonin following closely behind with a new bottle of wine in his hand for the Dark Lord.

"I need you and Antonin to visit Hogwarts and help prepare the next step," The Dark Lord stated before pausing for a moment to give Antonin his empty glass, "In addition, remember to use any mean necessary to keep that blasted man and his so called Order out of our business. I don't want them getting wind of my return or our plans just yet."

Lucius nodded along as he took a seat in one of the empty chairs near the fire, "Surely, I'll quietly use my sway with the governors to secure us a position in the preparation of the tournament."

Antonin on the other hand quickly refilled the Lord's empty glass and handed it back to him with a smile, "I'll dig up my old contacts to help on the inside as well, My Lord. I'm certain my Unspeakable friends could help us out somehow."

"Good, I'm leaving this in your hands then." The Dark Lord smiled a little again and drank happily from his freshly refilled glass. Antonin always knew exactly which wine the Lord needed and when.

"Yes, sir." Antonin replied and walked towards the exit to get a start on his new side job. He'll surely be back though before the night is over to attend to the Dark Lord's needs again as his trusty butler.

"Can I ask you to do a favor for me?" Lucius asked the Dark Lord once Antonin completely exited the room and shut the door behind him.

The Dark Lord raised his eyebrow, "Depends on what it is, Lucius. I'm a busy man right now and I can't do much."

"It's not much of a hassle, I promise. I was just going to ask if you could please pay my wife and Bellatrix a visit back at the manor. Bellatrix is growing rather inpatient with Cissy, you see. Any day now I think she'll rebel and do something impulsive unless you give her something to do."

The Dark Lord ran his hand threw his graying hair and sighed. Bellatrix has always been his favorite problem child in the death eater circle so it's his job to keep her in line. "Alright then; I'll make the time to see them tomorrow morning."

Lucius smiled then, "Thanks, Tom."

The Dark Lord scowled and sat his glass down on the table to make sure not to spill it in his anger. "How many times have I told you to stop calling me that?" He grumbled out.

"How many times have I told you I wouldn't? My sister was allowed to call you by that name and I will as well." Lucius snickered out.

"Get out of here before I hex you all the way to Hogwarts." He snapped back as Lucius fled the scene with a laugh.

"I'll never understand you lot." Snape voiced and took the last gulp of his wine.

* * *

 **A/N:** Heeeeey, here's another completed chapter!... It only took a few months. Not bad, right? I'm totally joking I know the wait was slightly painful. In other news, this chapter was a huge pain to write in general. The thoughts of, "this isn't good enough" and "maybe I should just stop," kept me from writing sometimes. I pushed passed it though and here we are! This chapter begins the actual over arcing plot. The tournament, secret come back of he-who-has-a-nose-now, and many other important characters made a slip into this. More will be explained about things as the story plays out.

The time line of events has been shifted a bunch from canon counterparts. Like the mass death eater break out and Tom's return have been altered. Plus, the dark lord looks a little more human now... In general a lot of the death eaters have been adjusted. This story is going to show different and more human sides to them. I really want to push some empathy with them. That means good ol' Tom has to be a bit more nicer and open. Oh quick side note: pay attention to how people address each other. It'll give you hints for later. ;)

Annnd that's about it. I'm just going to leave this out now and hope for nice feedback.

 _ **-RoxyRoxas1313**_


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